the former Dutch colony declared independence on 27 December 1949. Since Dolf had a firm interest in the tropics, the van Bruggens decided to move to Africa instead. In Africa (1957–1966) They sailed to South Africa, stopping on their way at the remote Atlantic island of St Helena, in May 1957. Dolf had to make breakneck manoeuvres to reach the shore with a ‘klepdoos’ (a sweeping separator), thought by fellow-travellers to be a Geiger counter. In South Africa, Dolf had accepted a job at the Ministry of Agriculture in Pretoria. There he was charged with the study of insects and the problems they caused in warehouses. After three years he accepted the position of Marine Biologist and Curator at the newly erected Oceanarium in Port Elizabeth. Since it was the first institute of its kind in Africa, there were many start-up problems. When, shortly afterwards, the Natal Museum in Pietermaritzburg offered him a position as curator of malacology, it was an offer he could not refuse. Both he and Wenda worked at the museum from 1962 to 1966; she as a librarian and his personal assistant in the field. They frequently went out for fieldwork, taking the opportunity whenever the museum's Land Rover was available to make collection trips as far north as Malawi and Zambia. Dolf always took notes in his fieldbooks, which became more elaborate over the years. His Africana Biologica now contains 1550 pages, in eight parts. During his African years he not only worked on insects and his favourite snails, but also paid attention to the two other groups that had his firm interest: mammals and birds. He made many contacts with managers and rangers of National Parks, and became actively involved in nature conservation. His stay amidst the African wildlife also further stimulated his interest in zoos. In 1963, at the 125th anniversary of Artis Zoo in Amsterdam, Dolf sent a number of rock hyraxes (Procavia capensis) off by plane, as a gift from Dutch biologists working in South Africa. ‘Dear Dolf, it is time to return to Holland and to educate the students here with the many insights you have learnt in Africa.’ That was essentially the message that Prof. Dr Van der Vecht, chairing Systematic Zoology at Leiden University, sent to Dolf in the beginning of 1966. Some months later the van Bruggens sailed back to The Netherlands. Their cat travelled by plane